Time Is Essential in Embracing a New Religion

Greek Orthodoxy isn’t necessarily a common religion in America, it isn’t a very frequent answer to the question, “What religion are you?” However, for Sophia Wollard, being a member of the Greek Orthodox church has become a huge part of her life, it has proved to be a prominent characteristic of who she has become after a long road of hardships and affliction, that isn‘t necessarily overi Being a member of this church has been something she has definitely struggled with, something she has resented, and something she has cherished, possibly sometimes all at once Her rollercoaster experience with the Greek Orthodox church is nothing she regrets though, because without it, she wouldn’t have the same views on life, and she wouldn’t know the things about herself and the world she has learned because of it, Sophia claims, “[l]f none of these things had happened, I wouldn’t be the person I am now” The entire experience has taught her more about who she is, those around her, and religion itself; it has caused her pain and suffering, and it has caused her smiles and laughs.

Today, she has a more open and peaceful mind about the church, what her religion means to her personally, and what she believes in.

In the end, Sophia‘s religion taught her to love and taught her to see beauty in things she never saw before, it taught her that sometimes, it takes time to see the good in things and become happy, and that‘s okay.

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Sophia’s family converted to Greek Orthodoxy when she was about eleven years old, and she says, “the worst of it childhood-wise had already passed.” Everything was fine in general for a while, but as Sophia got older, she felt herself growing further and further away from the Greek Orthodox church, She had ideas and views of her own that didn’t necessarily coincide with what her religion was telling her she should think and believes She was receiving one set of ideals from her friends, peers, and the media, and a completely different set from her family and the church.

She struggled incredibly with this; she’s always loved the ideas that everyone should love one another and not have a judgemental mindset, “but then here’s the other end of it where my relatives and a lot of people i know are pulling these Bible verses out of nowhere stating how wrong the things that I think are okay, are, and it’s so freakishly confusing that it hurts” (Wollard), She began seeing more and more the ways people twisted Christianity and what it stood for, She became disgusted at how violent people could become and how poorly they treated one another, always using religion as an excuse for their inappropriate actions Her parent’s rules and ideals made everything worse. She couldn’t talk to them about the things she was feeling, because they were part of the problem “I can’t talk to my parents about it without being accused of things and without any anger on either side ensuing or me being cornered until I either blow up or leave“ (Wollard) Moreover, she couldn’t decide whether the issue here was the religion, or her parents, She came to resent the church, wholly and completely.

She wanted nothing to do with her religions This mindset of hers was not easy to hide from her parents, They wanted her to change, to abandon these new “unacceptable” ideas of hers. In the summer of 2014, they sent her on a roadtrip with a friend to a Greek Orthodox camp in South Carolina, And it was the last thing she wanted. Although she described the four~day trip to South Carolina as relaxing, it only gave her more time to build up anxiety. Sophia wasn’t in a stable emotional or mental state at the time due to her parents and religion, so she thought attending this week-long camp would only make everything so much worse But she loved it. The camp was beautiful, breath-taking, and one of the most valuable experiences she’s ever had. “[I]n that one week, I saw in those people what Christianity was really like,..it felt right and made my heart happy…l told myself that no matter what my parents said and no matter what the people around me said or how hard it was, I wanted to be a part of this” (Wollard), Since camp, Sophia’s mindset about the church and her religion has changed dramatically.

While she still struggles with her parents over religious issues, she‘s becoming much more open-minded and has begun to understand her religion and what it means to her. She believes that the influence the church has had on her is positive, “I feel like the experiences have taught me things about myself and the world that I probably never would’ve thought twice about otherwise“ (Wollard). She now plans on following Greek Orthodoxy in the future. She’s attended Greek Orthodox churches without her parents there, and she loved itr Even though her struggle with religion and her family isn’t even close to being over, Sophia is able to overlook past experiences with her family and previous religious experiences. She has to look at her religion and beliefs on her own, without harsh outside criticism and teachings, She has decided for herself that the church is a place she loves. “[T]he people are amazing…it feels right. Like, yes, I love this. Ijust need to give myself time” (Wollard).

Works Cited

1. Wollard, Sophia. Personal interview. 18 September 2015.